Large conveying systems are employed to transfer and distribute both raw ingredients to, and finished product from, the processing or cooking equipment in the food processing industry and, in particular, industry segments such as snack foods (e.g., potato chips, popcorn, nachos, corn chips, cheese curls, etc.). These systems are often comprised of vibratory or other conveyors, which are used to carry the product from the cookers directly to packaging machines or to distribute the product to other conveyors for transfer to other processes.
Slide gates spaced at appropriate longitudinal distances along the bottom surface or at the discharge end of the conveyor troughs are often employed to facilitate the distribution and transfer function. As the material travels along the conveyor the gates open and close, discharging material to other equipment or storage bins as required. The gates are usually operated by means of air cylinders or the like, causing a retaining plate under a cutout in the conveyor bottom to slide open when activated, thereby allowing material to discharge downwardly from the conveyor as it is fed along.
To a large extent, slide gate designs are driven by the requirement of withstanding the rigors of mounting directly to vibratory or other conveying equipment, which contribute to the variety and complexity of their designs. While present slide designs are functional, they are plagued with problems of sanitation, inherent in the complexity of the mechanisms used. Such complexity also creates difficulties in removing gates for replacement, repair, or cleaning, a time-consuming and cumbersome task. Hand tools and power tools are required to remove fasteners and components, often located in positions where they can fall into the product or otherwise become lost. Mounting rails and clamping mechanisms often have to be removed, usually a difficult task because of limited access to the conveying equipment in the installation. Reinstallation is also difficult, not only because of the limited access, but also because precise adjustments are required in order for the slide mechanisms to function properly. All of these problems also create considerable cost issues, those of the manufacturer, which result in higher costs to the user and those of the user for maintenance and cleaning.
Easier to clean and more sanitary gate designs have evolved over the years to address these problems and while present gate designs have improved the technology of slide gate design, the problems of cost and part complexity have not been entirely resolved. A manufacturer offering solutions that address these continuing concerns will have a competitive advantage because the need for discharge gates in conveying distribution systems is a significant element of these installations.